Mental Health Therapist, Contractor - IL / Remote

Mental Health Therapist, Contractor - IL / Remote

Join Cartwheel to help tackle the student mental health crisis. Cartwheel is an early‑stage company building a new kind of mental health program for kids that puts schools at the center. We see our role as supporting school staff who see kids every single day. Instead of going around them, we collaborate with them. This means:

• Earlier intervention
• Higher student and family engagement in care
• Better coordination among the trusted adults in a student's life

Kids shouldn't just aspire to get out of bed and drag themselves to class. They should be able to experience joy. They deserve to envision and build a life they're excited to live. If you join Cartwheel, you'll help make this vision a reality for millions of students across the country.

About the Role

We're looking for team-oriented and mission-driven therapists who believe in the power of collaborative care to join our amazing and interdisciplinary care team of psychiatrists, nurse practitioners, therapists, and school health professionals. As a Mental Health Therapist, you'll work directly with school staff, students, and families in our partner school districts to build stronger systems of mental health support.

Role type: 1099 independent contractor (10‑20 hours per week)

Location: 100% remote in the U.S.

Start date: Rolling start dates throughout 2025

What You'll Do

• Provide excellent care, including mental health assessments and skills‑based teletherapy, to elementary, middle and high school students in Cartwheel's partner school districts (typically 2‑4 months per student with possible extension up to 6 months)
• Collaborate closely with referring school counselors and other relevant providers at start of treatment and over the course of a student's care journey (including through regular phone calls, emails, and virtual meetings)
• Build trusted relationships with school staff and families to support a student's mental health needs, school engagement and engagement with school‑based services, as applicable
• Provide regular psychoeducation and support to parents and caregivers to enhance a student's mental health needs and individual therapy work
• Collaborate with Cartwheel MDs/NPs on treatment planning, care delivery and transition planning over a student's care journey
• Partner with the External Referrals team to support the identification of referrals to community mental health and primary care providers
• Have the opportunity to participate in case consultations and discussions with other Cartwheel team members
• Help to further build Cartwheel's clinical programming and wonderful Care Team

Who You Are

Must have…

• Passion for working in close partnership with schools on mental health
• Master's Degree or higher from an accredited school of Social Work, Psychology, Counseling or Marriage, or Family and Child Counseling.
• Active license in IL to deliver mental health care (LCSW, LCPC, PhD/PsyD, etc.)
• Experience with CBT, DBT, ACT, solution‑focused therapy, and/or motivational interviewing
• Experience delivering care via telehealth
• Strong technological skills and learning new systems, including Zoom, GSuite (Google Calendar, Gmail, etc.), electronic health record systems, and other collaboration tools
• Access to a reliable, high‑speed internet connection (50 Mbps download, 10 Mbps upload)
• Excellent organization, communication, and collaboration skills
• Ability to offer hours both during and especially after a typical school day (e.g., 3‑8 pm Central Time)
• NOTE: As long as you have an active license in the above state, you can live and deliver care from anywhere in the United States

You can test your internet speed at

Extra Credit…

• Fluency in other languages (e.g., Spanish, Portuguese)
• Active NPI number (Need to apply for your NPI? Visit this link. It takes about 2 to 4 weeks)
• CAQH credentialing set up (Need to apply for CAQH? Visit this link. It takes about 3 to 4 days)
• Experience working in a shorter‑term model of care delivery (e.g., 2 weeks to 6 months)
• Experience with parent guidance
• Excitement to join an early stage start‑up and help bring Cartwheel to more students and school districts

Why You'll Love Cartwheel

• Flexible and 100% remote role (10‑20 hrs/week)
• Competitive compensation ($45‑85/hour base hourly rate for Master's‑level clinicians, dependent on licensure, experience, language, etc.)
• Team‑based care model with mission‑driven colleagues
• Administrative support from our experienced, full‑time Care Coordinators so you can focus on delivering care
• Opportunities beyond clinical care, including working closely with schools on staff support, workshops, and other programming

Equal Employment Opportunity

Cartwheel is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We embrace diverse backgrounds and perspectives and an inclusive work environment. We're committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, disability status, or veteran status. We participate in E‑Verify. Please be prepared to provide acceptable documentation to verify your identity and work authorization.